To Spank or Not to Spank

So, corporal punishment. Or, maybe more specifically, spanking. It’s not actually something I feel so strongly on, just because I don't think it's going to have a big impact on a kid either way—assuming it doesn’t reach the level of serious abuse (whatever that means). So long as there aren’t any bruises, and it’s used sparingly, and there’s plenty of “You know I don’t want to do this, but here’s why I have to…” talk, then whatever. I recognize that there really is a distinction to be made between spanking your child and actually beating them, though I would still say I’m against the use of physical punishment in general. Obviously Hana and her brothers weren’t traumatized from occasionally being spanked, nor were Daniel or RJ, nor were my siblings and I, but did it really have such a positive effect? Not likely, I don’t think. Maybe with younger kids, in the short term, spanking can keep them from doing a particular thing. But I don’t buy that it has any lasting effect on moral character or one’s respect for authority. Having the threat of being spanked didn’t make me more respectful. If anything it made me more belligerent, as I was offended by how belittling and pointless it was. Plus it almost makes it more of a personal challenge to push the envelope and see what you can get away with. Really, it would be more effective to just level with the kid and explain to them why something is wrong or right. You can’t hope to get respect from someone if you can’t show them any, even if they’re not an adult.

Still, I’m not about to make it my mission to stop people from spanking they’re kids if they so choose; if it makes you feel better as a parent, go for it. I’m just surprised that Daniel was ever paddled in public school—even in Alabama! I wonder how prevalent it is nowadays. Apparently it’s legal in the state of South Carolina as well, though I’ve never heard of it happening. It may vary by school district, but I’m sure it used to happen way back when. Looks like it's on its way out.

再来年日本の大学に留学したい。（でも、いつかイギリスに行きます）

I would agree with Kat on studying abroad being a great opportunity that everyone should pursue, assuming there isn’t some personal complication making it unfeasible. Rarely will there ever be as ready a chance, with so many options, as when you’re in university. I mean, hey, why not? The prospect of getting to travel to and live in another country seems so amazing that I shouldn’t even have to bother selling it; being able to travel across the seas, meet new people, learn new language, try new foods, experience all sorts of culture and history you’d never find at home… Truth be told, as a white, nth generation American where n is too high a number to call to mind, it’s easy to feel as though I don’t even have much of a culture, that the United States is this modern, consumeristic, assimilating global power absent of genuine culture of its own. This widely (if vaguely) held assessment maybe isn’t quite fair, but even putting aside the age of buildings or numbers of historical artifacts, there is something inherently different about the sense of shared culture and identity you’ll find in many of the more nation-state-like countries of the world—varying in degree and precise character, of course, between each of them.

Personally, I never had any doubt that I’d study away as a college student, even as far back as elementary school. As someone who spent the better part of their childhood wishing they were British, I think I generally assumed the UK would be my destination—maybe Oxford or Cambridge or Edinburgh, if Hogwarts was off the table. I guess partially it was an ancestral decent thing, but mostly I think it was a matter of shared language and all the British books, music, TV shows and movies I loved. Perhaps the idea of me learning another language seemed too far-fetched. Later I started giving more consideration to other countries, namely in Western Europe, where I could always get by with English as I work on my German or French or Dutch or Swedish. There’s no shortage of places I’d like to go; the problem is picking one. Well, that was the problem anyway. Now I’m pretty sure that I want to spend my junior year at Waseda University, in Tokyo. 

This plan would probably come as a surprise to the me of a year or two ago, who despite some interest in Japan had never placed it foremost on the list of places I wanted to go. But I chose Furman and got to go on a free, two-week trip to Japan, which was awesome, and now I may even be getting a major in Japanese Studies. So given that, and that I really want to reach a high level of foreign language fluency, this particular exchange program is hard to pass by. An entire year in the world’s largest city, at one of the nation’s most prestigious universities, with plenty of time-off to interact with locals and explore the rest of the country—maybe even take a trip to Korea. Plus one of my best friends (who’s half-Japanese) wants to go, so I’ll have benefit of having a familiar face who’s already pretty proficient. Though with only two spots available let’s hope we don’t face too much competition.

I can’t say I see myself ever moving to Japan permanently. It’s a friendly place for gaijin (foreigners), especially Americans, but not exactly known for readily accepting immigrants as full members of society. If I end up an expat it’ll still probably be somewhere in Great Britain, as I’ve always wanted. And I haven’t given up my dream of properly traveling Europe!

Who ever accused money of having good taste?

I wouldn't go so far as to say I dislike sports, even when I'm not participating in any way. I'm pretty faithful with the big events, your Olympics and World Cups and the like, and I've practically been to every home USC home game during my lifetime. Still, as someone who has never been anything resembling an avid fan, I'm as baffled as anyone when it comes to the huge amount of money that flows endlessly into the sporting world. Assuming they haven't cured cancer or solved world hunger, does a football or basketball player really deserve $30 million? Is that even remotely fair? 

Well, maybe not. Then again, look how much money we as a society have given to the Kardashians or Justin Bieber or the people on Jersey Shore. Or Stephanie Meyers—objectively, I think it's hard to argue that writing four lowbrow vampire novels should earn someone upwards of $100 million. But hey, if you the consumers are willing to spend that much on these things, more power to you. That's capitalism! The power to make wholly unremarkable people appallingly wealthy in return for whatever inane entertainment they (or the corporate puppetmasters being them) are peddling. Making millions upon millions to participate in a seemingly fun pastime may appear unfair to those who have to show up to work every day—to those in the military or civil service, to scientists or teachers—but a point Jack noted should be some consolation: their careers will be over soon and they'll have blown through all their money in a flash.

Really though, it's not like we've ever striven for complete fairness in the way we compensate people. Supply and demand can look illogical. You don't get paid based on how kind you are or how intelligent you are, or even by how much good you do for others. There's definitely no perfect correlation between salary and level of effort put in.

If we're going to go back to the sports topic, just look at college athletes. A star college football player has to put in as much work as an NFL player and can generate just as much revenue and excitement from fans. This on top of having to keep up the "student-athlete" pretense, and yet they aren't paid anything at all. Personally, I don't think the amount of money in professional sports is half as troubling as the amount in the NCAA. And yet somehow with their billion-dollar profit they receive tax exemptions as a non-profit organization.